PaDavid

I’ve read the post and all the comments to date. I agree with the sentiments that it’s unjust to put a freeze on pensions; also that those who try to illegally circumnavigate the law should be tracked down. But, what I don’t understand is what UK border control is doing. Surely, if someone leaves UK and doesn’t return for 6 months, they've either moved abroad or are dead. Why put the onus on banks to do the government’s job?

Sorry, I should have said thank you for your interest. I’ve tried to précis down the many hospital appointments, over about 6 months, with doctors of various specialisations. David

Unfortunately I’ve been involved with a chain of doctors - at Srinagarind Hospital, Khon Kaen University. At the pain clinic the doctor suggested I must have suffered an infection of some sort, but she doubted it was dengue.

I’m 78, living in Loei Province, and had dengue last year. This year I developed fibromyalgia, dysphagia, and pulmonary fibrosis. The first causes generalised pain and immobility throughout the body, the second difficulty in swallowing, and the third scarring in lung tissue. I’ve become convinced that this year’s events have come about as a result of last year’s dengue. I’ve carried out some research and discovered there is a condition known as Post-Dengue Syndrome (PDS). It seems that symptoms are widely variable and that little scientific or medical research has been carried out into it. I can find nothing to indicate that any of the major medical institutions in USA or Europe have studied it. There are no Facebook groups dedicated to it and few related specifically to dengue itself. I would be interested to hear from anyone who’s had dengue (confirmed by a blood test), particularly those who have experienced new symptoms in the months following on from it. I would also love to hear from doctors and pharmacists to provide specialist advice. Maybe if there are enough of us we can start looking into Post-Dengue Syndrome a bit more thoroughly, and possibly persuade Big Pharma to take an interest.

That’s really useful, so thank you. I live in Loei and I’ve been attending the pain clinic at Srinagarind SMC for about 3 months. I’ve had trigger point injections of lidocaine directly into the nerves. All these seemed to do was to move the pain to an adjacent nerve ending. Having started with very localised pain, it’s now spread over a 3 inch line. I also had alcohol injections into the nerve where it branches out from the spine - between the ribs. This gave limited relief for about an hour. My next appointment at the clinic is on 11th July and the doctor is planning to carry out some sort of procedure on the spinal cord (sorry, the language barrier prevents me being any more specific). I'd never heard of nerve ablation until you mentioned it. I’ll suggest this to the doctor. I’ve asked about an operation but she seems loath to follow this route. Personally, having followed an a.c.n.e.s group on Facebook for a while, I think the operation is the procedure which offers the best chance of success. Btw, I also suffer with fibromyalgia. I’d like to do more exercise to help this condition, but it triggers the nerve pain which makes it difficult. I’ll be really interested to hear any follow up information you have as you sound really knowledgeable. Thank you again. David

Has anyone else suffered with anterior cutaneous nerve entrapment syndrome? I’m currently receiving treatment at Srinagarind Hospital in Khon Kaen but, after 4 months, I’m still in considerable pain. Does anyone know of a hospital which specialises in this condition?

The top 5 are: Phuket, Thailand Pattaya, Thailand Krabi, Thailand Mugla, Turkey Hurghada, Turkey 1. Muğla (No 4) is a province (and provincial city) in Turkey. The city is inland and is fairly unremarkable. It certainly is not high on anyone’s list of places to visit. The province includes many resorts: Bodrum, Fetiyhe, and Marmaris are the larger ones, but there are dozens of other places dotted around the Muğla coastline many of which receive few tourists. . 2. Hurghada (No 5) is in Egypt, not Turkey. It makes you wonder how seriously you can take the report.

In my early days here whenever I had a question I would send Joe a personal message. He never failed to reply and his advice was always most informative. I never met him personally, but I imagine him as a very caring person. RIP my friend

I understand all the arguments about checking the small print on insurance documents, but we were all young once and how many of us can honestly say we never did anything reckless? What I don’t understand is why he was treated in a Bangkok hospital. In a state facility his bill would have been considerably less.

Great point. And, 83% of the deaths were motorcyclists

There are plenty of accidents for sure, but very few fatalities. Of course, there’s a much lower population density so comparisons with city statistics is problematic. Personally, I only ride a non-motorised cycle - shorts & tee shirt (always white), no helmet. My biggest problem is the dogs.

In the sticks no helmet is the norm. In fact, it’s rare to see anyone wearing one. But, of course, there’s far less traffic and journeys are mostly shorter, so probably a much lower death rate.

Add me to the list of those who missed you. Every week I double-check to make sure I haven’t missed your column. I hope your recovery continues. Mental health problems are a <deleted>.

The early replies on this tend to agree with the netizens and think it’s ott. Personally, when I go to hospital I want to be attended by a professional looking nurse, not someone dressed like an escort. So, sorry guys, but I pretty much agree with the ‘new rules.’

Who says nothing ever happens in Loei?

I don’t agree with most of your column, but you did get two things correct. At least from my limited perspective: 1. Most farangs living in the sticks have little money and, thus, need to rely on agencies for their annual visa extensions - which further reduces the amount they have to live on. But, if living in the capital makes everyone as grumpy as you, I’ll happily call myself a bumpkin - thank you very much. 2. I’ve always found Bangkok taxi drivers honest and friendly, though I can’t say the same about most of the other citizens I’ve rubbed shoulders with. But, of course, most of the taxi drivers hail from Isaan.